Palaniswami slams CM over silence on MLAs’ conduct

Chennai: AIADMK general secretary Edappadi K Palaniswami on Friday slammed Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay for maintaining silence over his party MLAs’ conduct and rising crimes in the state, asking him to wake up from “Kumbhakarna slumber” and crack down on criminals.

In a strongly worded statement posted on social media, Palaniswami claimed that Tamil Nadu, which was once an Eden of peace, turned into a “robbers’ den.” Referring to the chief minister as a “reel CM,” he questioned whether Vijay’s leadership and “action” were limited solely to cinema cameras, contrasting his pre-election speeches on public safety with the current situation.

“Will the chief minister, who has not yet broken his silence on the activities of his MLAs, break his silence on the fact that Tamil Nadu has become a den for robbers instead of remaining an Eden of peace? ..will the CM wake from his Kumbhakarna slumber and crack down on criminals,” Palaniswami asked. The former CM alleged that murders, robberies, and muggings have become daily occurrences, leaving citizens in fear for their lives and property.

To substantiate his claims, the AIADMK chief listed several recent criminal incidents across multiple districts — Rs 50 crore jewelry heist at a prominent jewellery showroom in Madurai, alleged misappropriation of Rs 1.5 crore in TASMAC collections in Kancheepuram, alleged theft of 13 sovereigns of gold from a 70-year-old woman by a TVK functionary in Tirunelveli, 16 sovereigns of gold stolen from a woman at knifepoint in Villupuram, burglaries reported at the residences of seven professors in Tiruvallur, and attempted burglaries at seven houses near Pallipalayam in Namakkal after street lights were switched off at midnight.